Thursday, May 8, 2014

It is a place associated with Keshari dynasty;
capital of Kingdom of Rana Anangabhimadeva of Ganga
dynasty, Gajapathi kings, under Maratha rules and more. It is Cuttack,
the former capital and the second largest city in the state of Odisha. Also
known as the 'MillenniumCity' or the 'SilverCity', it is the headquarters of Cuttack district and is located about 28 km to the north
east of Bhubaneswar,
the capital of Odisha. The name Katak is derived from Sanskrit, and means a military
establishment.

Not sure how it was awarded the match
between KXIP Vs CSK … fans were in for a real treat. Glenn Maxwell fell within touching distance of
a century for the fourth time in the competition, but neither he nor Kings XI
Punjab were complaining in the end. Punjab
made 231 - and though Super Kings
managed 187, at no stage were they serious contenders in the chase. There was carnage as bulls ran untamed ….the
last ten produced a whopping 162, an IPL record, of which the last five
produced 78. It was Miller-Maxwell partnership and then George Bailey on
rampage.

IPL has entertained and has been subject matter of many
controversies and court cases too… this is about another landmark judgment on a
game……… one which has impacted the southern part of Tamilnadu in a huge way. It has its place in Sangam literature and
considered a game of honour. It is Jallikattu (Aeru thazhuvuthal), a bull taming sport of our State. Unlike its western cousin, the bull is seldom
killed and here the matadors do not use any weapons. It is also known as manju virattu – chasing
the bull.

Is it daredevilry ? a game ? or torturing bulls or losing
men trying to prove their valour ? what happens to those who get killed ? and
lose their limbs / senses ? - answers depend
on perception – now you have a clear decision from the Apex Court.

Animal lovers have been seeking ban; earlier
a Bench considered it barbaric involving cruelty of animals; Govt pleaded it a
sport and now there are restrictions in place. In this game (!) an agitated
bull is set to run in an open space, where several youth, empty handed try to
tame it by controlling its horns. The
winner gets a booty, becomes darling of the crowd. The most famous ones are held in and around Madurai
at Alanganallur, Avaniapuram, Palemedu, Thammampatti in Salem, Ponnamaravathi
in Pudukottai, Pallavarayanpatti near
Theni to name a few. In 2007, for the
first time, both the bulls and the matadors of the famed Alanganallur
Jallikattu were subjected to breathalyser test to ensure that they had not
consumed alcohol.

Now the Apex Court has banned the traditional
bullfight stating ‘animals do have the right to live peacefully’. Upholding animal rights and pointing out the
"untold cruelty" the bovines are subjected to, the Supreme Court on
Wednesday banned centuries-old Jallikattu-bullfights and bullock-cart racing-
organised during festivals in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states. Significantly, the bench headed by Justice
K.S. Radhakrishnan favoured elevating the rights of the animals to
"constitutional rights". "The
Parliament, it is expected, would elevate rights of animals to that of
constitutional rights, as done by many other countries, to protect their
dignity and honour," the bench said. The bench of Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and
Pinaki Chandra Misra said, “Forcing a bull and keeping it in the waiting area
for hours and subjecting it to the scorching sun is not for the animal’s
well-being. Forcing and pulling the bull by a nose rope into the narrow, closed
enclosure or ‘vadi vassal’ (entry point), subjecting it to all forms of
torture, fear, pain and suffering by forcing it to go the arena and also
over-powering it in the arena by bull tamers, are not for the well-being of the
animal.” It said the torture and cruelty
meted out to the bulls was unimaginable. “Being dumb and helpless, they suffer
in silence. We notice that the situation is the same in Maharashtra
too.”

Welcoming the SC order, animal rights association People
for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said it is a landmark victory for
animals in India.
A newspaper cites Bench as stating - "Sadism and perversity is writ large in the actions of the
organisers of Jallikattu and the event is meant not for the wellbeing of the
animal but for the pleasure and enjoyment of human beings, particularly the
organisers and spectators".

There is another gory game : Spanish bull
fighting, a popular sport (!!) conducted in an arena where the bull enters the
ring, then an assistant waves a bright yellow and magenta cape infront to anger
it, the top fighter called Matador and
fighters Picadores weaken the bull by piercing spears. The matador has a sword called espada; the
bull eventually drops dead. There could be rules and
variations, which we may not understand much ~ jallikattu
has been far less cruel – yet as the Court observed it is torture of animals.